Good Morning & Hello Friday!

• A bit rushed this week. Squeezing two days of writing into one.
• Arrived in Nashville yesterday afternoon. Sweltering here and today we are expecting torrential thunderstorms. Staying at Soho House which is always super nice to have as a home base while traveling. Btw, Travel & Leisure just included Nashville among America’s “Best 15 Cities to Visit.” Look for my SNAPSHOT OF AMERICA: NASHVILLE post next week.
• The focus of this week’s blog is entertainment (#1, 2, 3), business (#5, 6), and travel (#9, 10).
• Also 2 big recommendations: Elliott Choy’s YouTube channel (#1) and the Wolf Street Report (#6). I’ve followed Elliott for a while, always impressed by how smart, focused, and down-to-earth he is. The Wolf Report is newer to me – been a subscriber to the free version for several months. Along with Axios, these are two of my best sources of biz info.

Please scroll down for this week’s “rushed” Top 10.

1. Elliott Choy’s YouTube Channel: Great way to stay up-to-date on what “the kids” are into!

This 7.58 min video provides insights on:

1. Switching to black-and-white mode on your phone. Elliott swears it makes him more productive. It’s not new, but I had not heard of it before (at 2:25).
2. Elliott’s financial tip for his friend when they go shopping at the Real Real: NEVER make an expensive impulsive buy. Wait 2 to 3 days and then if you still want it, go for it. Elliott, however, believes that in most instances, you’ll be thankful to have passed on the purchase. Of course, his friends don’t listen (at 4:06).
3. Weekly dinners with founders, entrepreneurs, VCs. He recognizes the value of being around cool, smart people working on interesting projects (at 6:50).

2. check out ClassicalDamn on Instagram — it’s very funny!

1. Just discovered the Classical Damn Instagram account. (Source: Bored Panda)
2. It combines two of its creators’ passions: art and memes. Started in 2019 and has quickly grown to 343K followers.

3. Stray, the latest game from Annapurna Interactive, has two unique elements.

In the game, you play a stray cat navigating a dystopian, cyberpunk world. What makes the game unique (besides playing as a cat):

1. THE VOICE-OVER IS DONE BY A REAL CAT – LALA!! One of the best parts of the game is that there is an entire button dedicated to meowing. Lala provides the meows and other cat sounds. Apparently, the cat sounds are so real gamers have reported their own cats have become obsessed with the game and watch them play Stray incessantly.
2. MODDERS HAVE STARTED TO ADD THEIR OWN CATS TO THE GAME! And that keeps real cats glued to the game even more.

4. R13 Denim Store in Soho: checked it out/love it!

• I wrote about this designer last week after the brand kept popping up on my Instagram. I’m really intrigued by it although I don’t consider myself the target consumer.
• They have one store and it happens to be in NYC (34 Howard, right next to Rick Owens).
• The clothes are very punk (which I love) but also VERY expensive. Most interesting: the salesperson (who was young and cool and very nice), told me that many of their customers are older women who grew up in the punk era – so that made me feel so much hipper and less weird for loving this brand so much.
• BOTTOM LINE: I plan to pick up (or at least try on) a few pieces for the winter as soon as the weather cools down.

5. New Fashion HQs announced

In both these cases, the companies are consolidating while also expanding.

1. Alexander Wang is moving his global headquarters from Soho to the Seaport in Lower Manhattan. He’s taken a 15-yr lease for the penthouse on Front Street from the Howard Hughes Corporation. The space will house the company’s offices as well as its showroom. Wang joins ESPN’s broadcasting studios and Nike’s creative studio and the Fulton Building is now fully occupied!
2. In LA, Forever 21 found a new “forever home” (their words, not mine) in DTLA, signing a lease for 164,000 sq. ft of space at the California Market Center. The new HQs will also house a mock store for training employees, studios for product photography/multimedia, as well as Lucky Brand’s West Coast employees.

6. if you’re not already following the Wolf Street Report, do it now!

This issue was particularly gloomy:

1. Amazon is halting construction on 5 office towers in downtown Bellevue as well as construction on its office tower in Nashville. They are also shedding up to 30 million sq ft of excess warehouse space and they have delayed/canceled plans for 13 more warehouses around the country.
2. Salesforce.com is attempting to sublease half its office space in San Francisco (over 400,000 sq ft).
3. Meta/Facebook canceled plans for 300,000 sq ft of office space near Astor Place in Manhattan and halted plans to build out new offices at Hudson Yards.
4. Tech has finally gotten a dose of reality after a “charmed” decade living high on the hog. Many other industries from mortgage lenders to crypto platforms are also plunging back to earth. In the short term, this will not be pretty but it’s an essential adjustment. The bubble had to burst.

7. New favorite quick lunch: Shanghai CHICKEN Salad from Fresh & Co.

1. It’s really fresh, light, and very zesty with the miso sesame vinaigrette. The salad is 233 calories and the dressing is an additional 150 or so. I prefer it to any of the salads from Sweetgreen or CAVA.
2. My local Fresh & Co. is at Broadway near NYU. Really nice staff which made what I witnessed last Saturday all the more upsetting.
3. Midday, while I was enjoying my salad, a guy came in (homeless, but not obviously so) and helped himself to drinks and food from the beverage and pre-made section. On his way out he gave the young cashier a vile stare. It made me livid. I was *this* close to confronting him but I know that’s a good way to get stabbed. However, I did look for him on my way home and might have given him a piece of my mind had I run into him. THIS IS SIMPLY NOT RIGHT!! WE CAN NOT GIVE UP ON LAW AND ORDER AND EXPECT TO HAVE A CIVIL, PRODUCTIVE SOCIETY.

8. Pizza served Brazilian rodízo style: new in Austin this week!

1. At Delucca Gaucho Pizza & Wine, servers operate in a Brazilian rodízo style, bringing slices to anyone who waves them down. [A rodízio is an all-you-can-eat style of restaurant where customers pay a fixed price, and waiters bring food to the table several times throughout the meal, with sides offered buffet-style.]
2. Delucca first opened in Dallas in 2018 by Brazilians, Vanderleia “Dede” Mallmann and Evandro Caregnato.
3. And in case you’re wondering about Brazilians making pizza, Brazil is teeming with Italians. The consulate claims 11% of Italians outside of Italy live in Brazil. (Source: Austin Culture Map)

9. Maine in October? I’ve never been. Recommendations?

1. I love colder weather, and I love lobster.
2. Have briefly checked out what’s on offer. The places I’m most interested in are Portland (staying at the Press Hotel?), Bar Harbor, whale watching, Kennebunkport, Reny’s department store for Carhartt and other workwear, Castle Tucker, and lighthouses!
3. If anyone has any recommendations, please let me know!

10. the biggest travel trend: TAKING months-long trips abroad!

1. I currently have 3 sets of friends (all in their 40’s) who have taken extended vacations abroad this month.
2. One group has been in Europe (Italy and France) for at least a month. They are staying in fabulous hotels and are accompanied by friends and toddlers! Another group of friends is in Spain enjoying the Soho Houses around Barcelona. And my German friends are in the States doing a major road trip (6 weeks?) that started on the West Coast, headed into the Heartland, and is now wrapping up in the South. Their favorite city by far has been Nashville.
3. In researching travel trends, extended stays of a month or more is indeed a thing. However, according to Forbes, it’s primarily driven by people booking airbnbs and working remotely. I don’t believe that has been the case with any of my friends.
4. BOTTOM LINE: If I ever get my green card renewed, I will be taking an extremely extended trip (at least 2 months) throughout Europe hitting up every single Soho House!

And on that note, it is a wrap for this week.

Dreary weather or not, we are having a wonderful time in Nashville celebrating Jourdan’s birthday. Pic. below from last night’s dinner.